I Try Twice as Hard so I'm Half as Liked
by Cadavatar
Summary: Nobody leaves. Bad things happen when they leave. But the best magic can surmount any obstacle in theory, and apparently it works very well in practice. Storybrooke has magic again, and from the limelight comes a couple of new characters, and they like marching to a different tune.
1. Enchantment

"What do you seek, dearie?" He let out a laugh- a terrible, giggling laugh that sounded like a woman's. It was no evil cackle of course, that was the dark queen's territory. But it still sent a chill down the woman's spine as she whirled around, taking a fighting stance. He'd caught her off guard, even though he was the one she wanted to see. Standing up straight again, she cursed her idiocy.

The woman gulped and closed her eyes, envisioning what she wanted. "An enchantment." She told the man, holding up a finger. Her eyes still closed, she continued. "I want an enchantment upon my boots; one that will let me go wherever I want, whenever I want to, for as long as I have them." She opened her eyes again, focusing on keeping her breathing steady. Her heartbeat was filling her ears.

Obviously unimpressed by her request, the man with the strange skin gave a mocking sigh. "Oh, is that all? I was expecting... more." He gestured with his hands and smiled. She averted her gaze from his teeth, as they disgusted her. Lifting her chin, Rumpelstiltskin made her look. "So, a pair of magic boots, you say."

"No." She corrected him firmly. "An enchantment. On _these_ boots that I'm wearing." She wanted to make things clear- clarity was important when dealing with magic. "They're worn. Comfortable. Well made. Make them incapable of wearing out, too. Please." She shouldn't be adding conditions, conditions made the price go up. And-

"Magic always comes at a price." Yes. That. She gulped and nodded, flexing her fingers as he circled around her. A finger tapped his lips as he pondered her request. "You have no money. No jewels. No love interest... That you've mentioned." She shook her head rapidly, hair flying. "So no children on the way for me to snatch. No family. What could you possibly give me?"

With that, the girl turned and pointed to a castle in the distance, the reason she had picked the spot in the meadow to meet him. "That castle." She declared. "And another favor, on top of that." She added when his eyebrows raised, a skeptical look on his face.

"Ah... That castle isn't yours." He pointed out; his head bobbing from side to side like it was a puppet's. "How exactly do you plan to get that prime bit of real estate for me, dearie?"

A frown fixed onto her face, and the girl swallowed, her mouth dry. "The castle is in the Carabas March, which borders the Frontlands. And the county Scarborough is to the west with, a view of the-" She started, but Rumpelstiltskin hissed to cut her off.

"I know where we _are_." He said, his words short and clipped. "The location isn't of importance."

"It is." She spat back, getting agitated. The man laughed at her, but she plowed on. "Because it isn't in the hands of men anymore. It's overrun with ogres. All the villagers are dead, or fled when the castle fell. Whoever clears it out owns it. I'll do that. Then, I'll give it to you, in exchange for an enchantment on my boots." She puffed up her chest, proud of herself for her cleverness.

Still unimpressed, the man did his odd little laugh again. "And... What makes you think I can't do all of that myself?" He asked in a singsong voice. "With a snap of my fingers, I can turn all those ogres into mice."

"Then you'd have a castle overrun with vermin." She mumbled under her breath. It apparently wasn't a low enough register though, because the Dark One tilted his head, steepling his fingers as he looked her over like she was going to be the one turned into a mouse. She cleared her throat. "And... all magic comes at a price." She said in a solemn manner. "Even something as simple as turning monsters into mice."

"If it's so simple, let's see you do it, dearie." He challenged her, and she narrowed her eyes.

"I will bring you their bodies." She countered while a smirk started to form on her lips.

Nodding, Rumpelstiltskin waved her off toward said ogre-infested castle, a wicked smile on his face. "You do that, and we'll have a deal. You'll get your boots. I'll get a nice home, and a favor from you. Oh, but I want something else from you as well. Off the record." He assured her as she opened her mouth to protest. "What_ is_ your name, dearie?"

With a snort, she turned on her heel to go. "I'll tell you if I come back." She smiled at him over her shoulder, waving goodbye as she waded through the grass. She wanted to make camp in the forest for the night before starting on her quest the next day.

"One step closer." She whispered to herself, trying very hard to ignore the holes Rumpelstiltskin's eyes were burning into the back of her head.


	2. Aftermath

**I'd like to make a couple of notes before we begin. First and foremost, I'd like to extend a warm thank you to** **Receuvium, my reviewer. Secondly, I'd like to make clear that this is not yet an AU, and it will follow the storyline as of the end of Season One. I cannot be certain if Season Two will be as interwoven.**

It was quickly approaching winter once again in Storybrooke, Maine. It was strange; it seemed like Valentine's Day had only been a few months past. Since everyone's magic and memories had been restored, time seemed intent on flying by at breakneck speed. It was harder for some to adjust than others- Snow still was having trouble trying to pick between her true name and Mary Margaret, which she had used for so long it was all but a reflex to go by that moniker. Ruby, however, was eager to keep her new name and ditch the old one, as was Ashley.

The man with the name that really needed changing, Mr. Rumpelstiltskin Gold, was nowhere to be found. Apparently he had taken his little trip after all, accompanied by the true love he'd been happily reunited with. Both he and Regina disappeared after everything had transpired. While the former had little to worry about- some irked individuals here and there, but no more than before, maybe even a couple less- the latter had cleared out for good reason. Almost every person in Storybrooke had combed the township looking for her.

That meant, of course, that Henry was left without his 'mother'. As much as she claimed to love him, the dark queen certainly had no qualms with leaving the boy to Emma now. Regina probably wasn't planning on leaving the arrangement permanent, but given that Henry had almost _died_, Emma wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Snow was more than happy to give the old apartment to the two of them while she moved in to a new place alongside James. (Or was it David?) Emma was still having trouble referring to them as Mom and Dad, but that was a different can of worms entirely. It was a delicate day-by-day process.

It was also a process that started with a healthy and hearty breakfast, meaning Emma and Henry were parked at Granny's counter for a quick bite before work and school, respectively. As Emma sipped her coffee and Henry happily munched his way through a plate of eggs, the younger of the two put his fork down for a moment as he paused in thought. "Hey, Emma?" He tested, as he still hadn't quite gotten used to calling her 'Mom', "If the curse is broken, and if magic is back in Storybrooke... Why do you think Archie didn't turn back into a cricket?" It was a good question. Dr. Hopper was wondering about the answer himself.

"I don't know, kid." Emma sighed. She wished she had answers for him, but in all honestly, she had as many questions as he did. "But whatever the answer is, you've got school in half an hour. Eat up." She encouraged, nudging him wish her elbow as the door opened with a jingle. A gust of wind blew through for a moment before it shut, the other occupants grumbling as the customer raised his hands in apology.

Taking a seat just a few stools down the bar from Emma, the man smiled cordially at her. "Morning." He offered before looking to Ruby, placing his order. Emma frowned. This guy was starting to creep her out- before, she'd seen him once, maybe twice. But since the curse was broken, she'd been seeing him everywhere. He was at the bank when he cashed her paycheck. He was in the diner when she had breakfast and lunch. He was looking at something on a shelf when she went to the grocery store. And what infuriated her most was that when she went to pick up Henry from school, he was there too- as for why, she had no clue. But he was.

Turning her head away from him slowly, she finally managed to tear her eyes away to look at Henry, who was finishing up. "Let's get you on the bus, kid." She offered, and Henry grinned as he hopped down. Signaling to Ruby that she'd be back, Emma gave one last glance at the strange man, now sipping his drink, before escorting Henry out.

"Do you know that guy? Is he in the book?" Emma questioned her son as they headed down the walk, hands shoved in her pockets.

"What guy?" Henry questioned, looking around. Emma jerked her head back to the bar. "Oh, Mr. Pfeifer? No, I can't find him." Henry frowned, kicking at a stone in his way. "Not everyone has a story. Or maybe he does, but he doesn't have an illustration." He concluded as they turned a corner, his stop in sight. "Operation Cobra is still going, though!" He reminded her, pausing to pull out the book again.

"We broke the curse, Henry. Operation Cobra is a success." She reminded him as she placed a hand on his back to keep him walking.

"Then why can't I find_ her_?" Henry asked, opening his book to a page he'd recently put a bookmark in. On the right hand side was a print of a girl leaping over a chasm. The angle of her body was strange- she had both feet forward like a long jumper, but her body twisted to the side at the waist. The woman's face wasn't very easy to make out, as in comparison to the large gorge and the forest surrounding it, she was small. But it didn't matter- the shock of red hair streaming behind her was more than enough of a clue to go off of.

"I'm sure she's around, Henry. Storybrooke is a big place." Emma assured her son, looking up to see the school bus coming around. "We'll work on it later, okay?" She assured him, clapping him on the back as he put the book away into his bag once again. "Have a good day at school. I love you." She kissed his forehead and tousled his hair as the bus came to a stop, watching intently as he got on and sat down before the faded yellow vehicle drove away.

With a heavy sigh, Emma turned- and found that 'Mr. Pfeifer' was standing on the corner, portable cup in one hand. He was looking up at the sky as he sipped his drink, looking rather comfortable and without a care in the world. Squaring her shoulders, Emma decided she'd had enough of beating around the bush and started toward the corner. He either didn't notice her or he didn't care that she was barreling toward him, because when she got to him he greeted her with a languid smile before speaking. "Hello Sheriff." He offered, gesturing to the school bus with his coffee cup. "Just showing Henry to school?"

That alarmed her. How much did he know about her and her family? "How do you know his name?" She questioned, a frown forming on her face.

Looking alarmed, the man raised his hands in defense- a gesture he was fond of using, apparently. "I've seen him around the school when I drop off instruments. He's an interesting boy. I'd peg him as a clarinetist." He laughed at her facial expression. "I fix instruments for the band classes." He clarified.

"Oh. Well." That explained why she saw him at the school so often. Mary Margaret told her they had an extensive music program that started in the upper level grades. Henry was getting to be about the age for it.

Rolling his eyes in a good natured fashion, the man tentatively put a hand on Emma's shoulder and raised his eyebrows at her. "Relax, Miss Swan. Please. I don't have any intention of hurting your son."

"I don't have any intention of hurting you either pal, but if you don't let go of me you're gonna lose a finger." She threatened, eyes flicking from her shoulder to his face.

With a surprised look he let go, once again holding his hand up. "My humblest apologies." He offered. "I rarely deal with people as... Defensive as you. With good reason, of course!" He quickly made amends as she opened her mouth. "In fact, I think I've only met one person that's gotten off to a rough start with me besides you, normally I'm much less..." He searched for the word.

"Off-putting?" Emma suggested, crossing her arms as she raised a brow at him.

A weak laugh escaped him and he looked around. "I was going for 'flustered'." He corrected her, sipping his drink. "But you've dealt with so many fairytales that I suppose anybody strange in this town would be off-putting."

"Yeah? And who're you exactly? What fairy tale do you fit in?" She countered, hoping that maybe she could solve the mystery for Henry.

Suddenly interested in his cup, Mr. Pfeifer laughed. "You know, there are thousands- possibly even close to a hundred thousand- of people living in this town." He gestured to the street. "Not everybody is a main character, you know." He smiled, and she was pretty sure he winked at her too. She might've missed it. "Your coffee is probably cold by now." He mused, sipping his own. "And if you don't mind pardoning me, I have an appointment to go to." He didn't say it in a rude way, not like she was used to with Regina and Mr. Gold. He actually sounded like he was sorry for blowing her off.

"You didn't answer my question." She pointed out, shifting her weight onto one hip.

"I didn't, really." He confirmed, looking both ways so he could cross the street. "But, I'll tell you what- I'll meet you at the diner for lunch, and we'll discuss it then." With that he began to cross, leaving her to yell after him.

"I never consented to a date!"

Turning around, the man grinned as he walked backward. "Then don't show up!" He offered as a solution, spinning again so he could continue on his way.

Emma decided not to comment on that, watching the man walk off.

Some days, she just couldn't win.


End file.
